Done Hanging On
by KP02
Summary: Sequel to "Don't Wake Me" The door was soon opened with an average looking teenager with a black eye. Bruce couldn't speak for a moment. Spider-Man was a teenager? That couldn't be right. "Hey kid, is Peter Parker in?" Apparently Tony had come to the same conclusion. "Yeah, that's me." In which Peter joins the team and chaos abounds! No slash!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Never let it be said that it takes me long time to post sequels. :D I just spent an hour typing this up, so enjoy! I'm just putting it in the Avengers category 'cause I'm lazy and it will be mostly Peter and Bruce centered. But no slash here!**

* * *

_**I kept it hidden in my secrets  
My lies became a blur over time  
I was just too blind to see  
The truth was staring back at me**_

_**-Done Hanging On; Hawk Nelson**_

* * *

Bruce followed Tony up the steps of the simple house.

"I'm just saying, I don't see why the Cap isn't doing this! Isn't he supposed to be like our leader or something?" Bruce was mostly ignoring the billionaire's rant, but he had to agree with him. Why the two who were probably the most awkward socially were sent, he had no idea. However, he knew there was a reason, there always was with Fury. They both stood silently after knocking. The door was soon opened with an average looking teenager with a black eye. Bruce couldn't speak for a moment. _Spider-Man_ was a teenager? That couldn't be right.

"Hey kid, is Peter Parker in?" Apparently Tony had come to the same conclusion.

"Yeah, that's me." The kid looked expectant, then he seemed to realize something.

"Hey, aren't you Tony Stark?" He questioned, squinting through his glasses. Tony seemed to puff up his chest.

"That's me! And this is my buddy, Bruce-"

"Just Bruce." The doctor interrupted, "is there somewhere that we can talk to you?" He asked, glaring at Tony.

"Yeah, sure, come on in." Peter seemed to be overly excited as he led the way up the stairs, no doubt to his room.

"Aunt May, I've got visitors in my room." He called down.

"Well, ask if they want to stay for dinner!" An older lady's voice filtered up to them. Peter held open a door for them, leading into a room filled with typical boy's stuff, right down to the computer with a picture of a pretty blonde girl.

"Uh, yeah, I was just, editing that." Peter hurried to close the window, then sat on the desk chair, waving a hand at the bed.

"Have a seat." Bruce sat on the edge of the bed, eyeing Tony. They had unofficially elected him as the spokesperson.

"Well Peter, we're here to talk to you about your, extracurricular activities." Tony started and Bruce studied the teenager for any signs of shock. It was faint, but there was a hint of wariness and maybe a little defiance.

"You mean my pictures?" He asked, motioning to an old-fashioned camera. Tony shook his head, a smirk on his lips.

"Not exactly kid. We were thinking more of what you're doing to get shiners like that." He replied. Peter touched his eye.

"Oh, this. Yeah, there's this kid at school…" He trailed off at the disbelieving looks on their faces.

"That's totally believable, right Brucey?" Tony said. Bruce sighed.

"Tony, stop calling me that." He ordered, for the hundredth time.

"Aw, but it's fun!"

"It's annoying." Their argument was cut off by the sound of the automatic lock clicking into place.

"What do you guys want?" Peter's voice had turned from the geeky nerd to a confident young man. Tony shook his head.

"Not much. Just your DNA, and a couple of other things. Maybe a finger, but hey, you've got ten, right?" He teased. Bruce could only sigh as in the next moment they were both stuck to the wall with what felt like webbing.

"Tony, shut up. Peter, ignore him, he's an idiot. We don't want to hurt you, in fact we want to help you." He assured the teenager, who was dividing his attention between them and the door.

"Help me? I'm doing fine on my own." Peter protested.

"For now, but you've been lucky so far. Wouldn't it be better to have a team?" Bruce reasoned, ignoring the headache that was slowly forming.

"A team?"

"Yeah, a little thing called the Avengers. Heard of us?" Tony butted in. Peter gaped at them.

"You guys… Are the Avengers?" He asked.

"Well, we're a third of them, yeah." Tony replied.

"Who's he?" Peter pointed at Bruce, who just gave a sigh.

"He's the guy who is getting sick of being stuck to the wall. So am I for that matter." Tony smoothly sidestepped the question, much to Bruce's relief. Peter nodded.

"Right, right, sorry about that." It only took a few minutes to tear the two superheroes down.

"So you really want me to join the Avengers?" Peter asked.

"Are you Spider-Man?" Bruce almost laughed at how eagerly the kid nodded.

"Then yes, we do."


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Yay for a new chapter! :D In return, I want reviews! Right now! Please?**

* * *

_**Life is just a lineup, tell me when my time's up  
Too much on my mind today  
There's so much left that I would like to say  
When I start to climb up will you pull my line up or am I just in the way?  
I think about it every single day, I think about it every single day**_

_**-Nothing Left to Show; Hawk Nelson**_

* * *

"Peter! Dinner!" The woman's voice called up the stairs, leaving Bruce to give a sigh of relief. Peter was enthusiastic and had a lot of questions for them. It would be a relief to leave and come back the next day. The three headed down the stairs, and Bruce and Tony went for the door, only to be trapped by Peter's aunt.

"You are staying for dinner aren't you?" She asked with a pleasant smile. A pleasant smile that assured great disappointment, and perhaps even tears, if they refused her food.

"Um, we'd love to!" Bruce replied with a smile. Her smile grew wider.

"Excellent! I already set places for you." She said, leading them into the dining room.

"Thank you very much, that was delicious." Bruce said politely when they finished. It actually was, in his opinion. He didn't generally like meatloaf, but hers wasn't bad. Of course, Tony's face said otherwise.

"Well, I'm glad you liked it. I don't get to meet many of Peter's friends. How do you know him?" She asked.

"Ah, we're his, um, work associates." Bruce quickly said. Tony quickly nodded in agreement. She didn't look convinced, but stood and started clearing the table anyways.

"Well, thank you again for having us." Tony stood up and Bruce quickly followed suit.

"Peter, we'll call you soon to set up a meeting." Tony said, serious for once. Peter gave a quick nod and the two left quickly, hoping to get out this time.

* * *

"So how'd the Spidey thing go?" Clint asked when they walked into the common room.

"Well, looks like he's a big fan. We told him we'd call him." Tony replied, flopping onto the couch. Bruce sat down in the armchair that had been his since he came back.

"So he wants to join our team?" Steve questioned.

"Yep. Looks like we get another guy in spandex." Tony said. Bruce rolled his eyes and tried to watch whatever was on TV that had Natasha and Pepper so enraptured. It looked like some sort of chick flick, but he couldn't imagine Natasha watching a chick flick. Even Pepper was doubtful.

"What movie is this?" He asked under Steve and Tony's latest fight.

"It's Titanic! Haven't you ever watched Titanic?" Pepper exclaimed. Bruce shook his head.

"Er, I thought it was just a ship?" He replied.

"Alright, Jarvis, restart it. Bruce, pay attention. This is the most romantic movie you have ever watched."

* * *

A little over three hours later, everyone but him was asleep in their respective seats. He had to admit, he could see the charm in it, but he couldn't see why they didn't both just get on the dumb headboard. There was enough room, and the only reason it swamped in the first place was because he got on it wrong. Bruce shook his head and switched off the TV before snickering at everyone's uncomfortable looking positions and going to his own comfortable bed.

* * *

_Somewhere in New York…_

Peter loved to fly through the streets. Especially now that the construction guys would always lend a boom to help him out. He landed on a rooftop, scoping out the city before swinging towards a grouping of sirens. He landed on the roof of a runaway car and poked his head through an open window.

"Hey, you know it's not smart to take what's not yours." He quipped, wiggling the rest of the way through the window so that he was in the backseat.

"Whoa, hey, what are you doing here?" The driver swerved a little, obviously surprised at having Spiderman suddenly appear in his car.

"Um, telling you to pull over, since apparently the seven cop cars and blaring sirens aren't enough." Peter replied, grinning under his mask before shooting out some webbing, gluing the thief's hands to the steering wheel.

"Alright, alright, I'm pulling over!" The thief shouted, slowing the car down and pulling over. Peter gave a quick salute before shooting himself out the window and to a nearby rooftop. He had a perfect view of Stark Tower from there.

"Wonder if I'll get a tour." He muttered to himself before another siren sounded.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: I am putting off homework to post this. Just so you know. :P It's just reading though, so it doesn't take much, but still! Anyways, enjoy! And review! Please?**

**P.S. With this song, I was thinking of the scene in the movie when he admits being suicidal at one point… If you have a different interpretation, I'd love to hear it!**

* * *

_**If I could catch the words before they left my mouth, I'd do it  
If I could reach right out and turn them all around, I'd do it  
But it's out there yeah I said it  
And in a way I don't regret it**_

_**Eggshells; Hawk Nelson**_

* * *

The next morning, Peter was walking out of school when a long black limo pulled up to the curb in front. He glanced around, wondering who had a limo. It didn't seem like anyone his school could afford it. Then the back window rolled down.

"Hey kid, get over here!" Tony Stark yelled. Peter grinned and bounded over, sliding right in. Bruce was inside as well, and for a moment Peter wondered if he was Tony's bodyguard. It made sense; he was always around the billionaire.

"-come over to the Tower." He caught the tail end of Stark's sentence.

"Wait, I get a tour of Stark Tower?" Peter questioned. He had heard their R&D department was amazing. Tony just laughed.

"Kid, I'm offering to let you live there." He held out a glass filled with some sort of amber liquid. "Drink?"

"Tony, he's underage." Bruce grabbed the cup and dumped it in a small sink. Tony pouted.

"That's a waste of good alcohol."

"Better there than eating away at your liver."

"I'm Iron Man! I'll make myself a new liver!" Watching their exchange, Peter had to nix the bodyguard idea. The two were far too casual for that. More like best friends. But that didn't explain why Bruce had come with him to recruit him…

"I've got it!" Peter exclaimed, interrupting their argument, "you're a secret agent, and his handler!" He pointed at Bruce and Tony in turn. The two men both burst out laughing.

"If anyone but Pepper can handle Tony, I will personally give them a gold medal." Bruce finally choked out.

"And does Bruce look like a secret agent?" Tony asked. Peter frowned and inspected the older man, who shifted uncomfortably under his gaze. His clothes were rumpled, and his hair was a little long and messy, as though he was always running his hands through it. On top of that, he was wearing a purple shirt. Peter was fairly certain that secret agents didn't wear purple shirts.

"Then who are you?" He demanded. Bruce gave a small smirk.

"You know, I'm enjoying this guessing game." He said, looking at Tony.

"I'll play if you want to." The genius replied, holding up a new glass of something that Peter was fairly certain was illegal for an 18 year-old to drink.

"Well, maybe I won't join your team." Peter threatened with the best thing he could. Tony just laughed.

"I really don't care. Fury was the one who sent us." He replied casually. Peter wrinkled his brow, distracted for the moment.

"Who's Fury?" Tony grinned again.

"That's right, you haven't met the good director! That should be fun!" He said, just before the limo came to a halt.

"Alright, time to meet the rest of the Avengers!" Peter nodded and followed the other two out, wondering if it was always like this.

* * *

_Bruce's POV..._

Bruce had to smile as they led the young man into the building. It was actually pretty fun teasing him. And it would be interesting to see what kind of guesses he'd come up with. It was surprising to learn that most people didn't know the Hulk had a human side, that he wasn't just a giant green rage monster all the time.

"Tony, who's the kid? I thought you were bringing Spidey." Clint was lounging on the couch, no doubt waiting for them.

"Uh, yeah, that's me." Peter spoke up. Once again, Bruce smiled at the look on Clint's face. It was almost as funny as how Tony had looked.

"Holy-Spidey's a kid? Hey Tasha, did you know that?" he asked as the female assassin entered the room. She rolled her eyes and sat down next to him.

"Yes, I did. Because I read his file. Unlike some people who decided that they needed to go play in the training room." She glared. Clint shrugged.

"I knew that you'd take care of it." He replied. Bruce shook his head and glanced at Peter. The kid was looking very lost, and Tony wasn't helping, having wandered off somewhere.

"Peter, this is Clint Barton, also known as Hawkeye, and Natasha Romanoff, also known as the Black Widow." Bruce introduced. The assassins looked up long enough to say hello before returning to their fight. Bruce sighed and took his glasses off.

"C'mon Peter, I'll give you a tour." He said, starting to walk. Peter followed eagerly.

"Where we are now is the common room, you'll generally find someone here during the day. Sometimes at night too, but that's gone down a little. The kitchen is right next door." Bruce led the way into the state of the art kitchen. It had all new appliances, but Natasha was really the only one who could cook, and that was mostly breakfast food.

"Can you cook?" Bruce asked. Peter shook his head.

"Shame, we could use someone. Alright, along this hallway are everyone's rooms. You'll probably get to choose yours-"

"Wait, you guys want me to live here?" Peter interrupted. Bruce nodded.

"Yeah, didn't Tony say something about that?"

"Um, maybe, but what about my Aunt May? I can't just leave her!" Peter protested.

"Bring her with you, Tony won't even notice." Bruce told him. It was true, Tony barely noticed that he had other people living there most of the time; he was so wrapped up in whatever he was doing.

"Ok…" Peter drew the word out, obviously overwhelmed. Bruce just continued the tour, leading him into the elevator.

"We pretty much have control of the top four floors. One is our living are, one is the training gym, one is labs, and the very top is the 'assemble' spot. Tony even made it to where we can land the Quinjet in there." Bruce explained, wondering how exactly he got stuck with the job of showing the kid around. Since when was he good with people? The elevator doors opened, revealing the high ceilinged training gym. Steve and Thor were in there sparring.

"Cap, Thor! Come meet the newest member!" Bruce called, waving the two over.

"Peter, this is Captain America, also known as Steve Rogers, and Thor Odinson. Guys, this is Peter Parker, or Spiderman." Bruce introduced.

"Hello Peter." Steve gave his infamous 'good guy' smile and held out a hand. Peter shook it, apparently in awe of the legendary captain.

"Peter! It is good to meet you!" Thor boomed, slapping the boy on the back. Peter coughed.

"Ah, great to meet you guys." He sounded a little out of breath, but Thor's greetings tended to do that.

"This is the gym, you can do pretty much whatever here, if anything is broken, Tony gets it fixed." Bruce told him. He personally didn't use the gym much, for some reason he stayed in good shape no matter what. Peter grinned, looking up at the rafters.

"This should be fun." He commented, then turned back to Bruce.

"Where to next?" He questioned. Bruce shrugged.

"Labs or assembly spot?" He asked.

"Labs. Definitely labs." Peter replied. Bruce grinned.

"Alright, let's go. See ya guys, I think Tony's instituting a schwarma night." He informed them. The elevator doors closed to their groans.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Once again, I wrote this instead of reading Psych… Even after being told not to. (thank you Susan M. :P) Anyways, enjoy Peter and a little lighthearted banter with our favorite assassin pair! :D**

* * *

_**Don't you know we all have our secrets  
We have friends who try to keep them  
Don't you know your sins will find you out  
I'm a man, a man with a problem**_

_**-Skeleton; Hawk Nelson**_

* * *

Tony was in the lab when they entered, fiddling with something. Bruce ignored him, enjoying seeing Peter's wide eyes as he looked at everything. That had been exactly what he wanted to do when he first saw this place, and he was an actual scientist. From the file on Peter, he was just a kid who liked science.

"You can come down here pretty much anytime. I'd stay out late at night though, stuff tends to explode when he's tired." Bruce told him.

"It's on purpose." Tony claimed, not even looking up.

"So when you burnt your goatee and eyebrows off it was on purpose?" Bruce shot back, enjoying the feeling of teasing someone without them being afraid. Close to six months of being around his teammates, and he still liked that feeling.

"It was an experiment that I learned a lot from, it was almost worth the sacrifice."

"Don't tell Pepper that, I thought she was going to kill you."

"I've got it! He's your lab assistant!" Peter interrupted again. Tony smirked at him.

"Sorry kid, wrong again. Brucey has his own section of the lab. He interferes with my genius." Tony said, with a wink at Bruce. The doctor just rolled his eyes.

"That totally explains why you're always in my section." He said, walking over there, Peter following on his heels like a lost puppy.

"Uh, if you want, you can watch…Or just wander around touching stuff, that's cool to." Tony said, his eyes following the teenager.

"Jarvis, turn off anything he gets close to." Tony said.

"Of course, sir." The AI's voice came overhead. Bruce watched Peter carefully, but there was no sign of the customary surprise.

"That's an AI, right?" Peter asked. Bruce raised an eyebrow and Tony gave him a look that was clearly asking how he knew that. Peter shrugged.

"I did some research on you." He said, continuing to move through the lab.

"Kid's smarter than he looks.

"Yeah, I'm sure you are to." Peter retorted. Bruce hid his smirk at Tony's affronted expression. Clearly he wasn't expecting the pipsqueak kid to respond to his snarks.

"What does this do?" Peter approached a big red button, finger out to push it.

"No, don't touch that!" Bruce lunged at him. Peter jumped back, his hands behind his back.

"I, uh, I, wasn't going to-." Bruce just started laughing.

"I was just teasing you Peter, that's Tony's emergency snack button. It brings food directly from the kitchen to here." He explained, still chuckling. Tony started cracking up as well.

"I'm proud of you, Big Guy, I didn't think you had it in you to do something like that!" He came over and clapped Bruce on the shoulder. Bruce tensed a little under the touch, but nothing like the jumping he'd done when he first came. Tony obviously noticed it though, and gave him a 'Look'. The look that said they'd be having a talk soon. Bruce sighed and checked his watch.

"Didn't you say something about ordering in schwarma tonight?" He asked. Tony nodded, already headed back to his work station.

"Yeah, it should be here in about ten minutes." He replied, his head disappearing into some complicated looking piece of machinery.

"What's schwarma?" Peter questioned, poking at one of the many holographic schematics.

"It's a Middle Eastern dish. I think it's pretty good." Bruce replied, returning to his own work station.

"Everyone thinks it's good." Tony's voice was muffled from inside the engine thing. Bruce shook his head at Peter. The three of them worked in silence for maybe five minutes, Bruce and Tony doing sciency things, while Peter just explored.

"So, where's the Hulk?" Peter broke the silence to ask. Both men stopped what they were doing to look at him.

"I, uh, I mean, I've met everyone else, so where's the Hulk?" He asked again. Bruce went back to what he was doing.

"You'll meet him if Fury orders us out. Until then, you really don't need to." He replied.

"Oh, um, okay." Peter mumbled. Bruce felt bad for being a little rude, then found that ironic. His alter ego smashes people for fun, but he feels bad for being rude.

"Sir, the schwarma is here." Even Jarvis's voice held a little disgust towards the food, and Bruce had to wonder once again how Tony had managed to inject emotion into the AI's voice.

"Excellent! Tell everyone else, and tell security to just put it on the table." Tony dropped his tools and headed towards the elevator, not even looking back to see if they were following. Bruce sighed and put his glasses in his shirt pocket before following Tony. Peter was just behind him.

"So how gross is schwarma?" He said in a voice low enough that Tony couldn't hear. Bruce just laughed. He liked it well enough, but he'd endured everyone else's complaints. Of course, no one complained to Tony; he was just too enthusiastic about keeping up the tradition.

Thanks to Tony's super-fast elevators, they were in the common room in seconds. The rest of the team was already there, staring at the boxes of food on the table.

"Aw, you guys didn't have to wait for us!" Tony exclaimed, descending on the food like a starved man. Which he probably was, Bruce wasn't really sure when he'd last eaten.

"Trust me, we don't mind waiting." Clint winced as soon as the sentence left his mouth. Bruce hid his smile and scooped up some of the meat.

"So kid, how old are you?" Clint posed the million-dollar question.

"Just turned 17." Peter replied, gulping down a bite.

"Didn't you read any of the file?" Natasha asked. Clint rolled his eyes.

"No, I already told you I didn't." He replied, then winced again, "would you stop kicking me?"

"Not until you stop being an idiot." Bruce shook his head at the two. They were only arguing to avoid eating, they did this every time they had the stuff.

"So, you two are married, right?" Peter's question silenced the table and had Bruce choking on his schwarma.

"Yeah, do tell, are you married?" Tony leaned forward. Clint glanced at Natasha.

"I dunno, are we married?" He asked. Natasha shrugged.

"You tell me, was that a real priest in Budapest?" Clint shook his head.

"Nope, but I was thinking of the guy in Japan." He replied.

"I don't think he was certified, but my Japanese is rusty." Natasha said, taking a sip of her drink.

"Well, there you have it. We really aren't certain at the moment. Guess we should hunt that guy up and ask him." Clint replied, poking some more food in his mouth.

"So, how many times have you guys been fake married?" Of course Tony was the one to pry.

"Er, something like five times." Clint replied after a few moments of counting on his fingers. Natasha shook her head.

"No, six. You forgot Hawaii."

"How could I forget Hawaii?" Clint's smile gave Bruce the creeps, and not in a good way. Peter looked as though he was feeling the same way.

"So, Peter, ready to go home?" He asked. The teenager nodded quickly.

"Uh, yeah, sounds good. Nice meeting you all." He shoved his chair away from the table and practically ran for the elevator. Bruce followed at a much slower pace.

"Is it always like that?" Peter asked. Bruce grinned.

"Nope." He said as the elevator doors closed. "Sometimes it's worse."


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Warning, slight angst… Just a little, because it's Bruce. :P **

**Also, I'm starting to plan out a sequel! However, I need your help. This isn't interactive, I just need you to choose a letter: A, B, or C. Include it in a review, and whichever letter gets the most votes will be the one I do. Each of them has a plot, but you don't get to know what it is, therefore it isn't necessarily interactive. :D After ten reviews, I'll choose which one it is. At the moment there are thirteen, so at 23 we'll know which one! Also, at the end of this story I'll post a preview of the next one. ;) **

**Stupidly long author's note is now finished! :D**

**P.S. I lied, I have another question. Does anyone know of some good bands with songs that apply to Bruce? I've just about exhausted all the ones I know of…**

* * *

_**I've stood alone a million times  
That's not the same as being alone  
I've felt ignored, and left behind before  
But that's not the same as being disowned  
Open my eyes, and help me see that there's a world outside of me  
I'm no different, I want to make a difference tonight**_

_**-Shaken; Hawk Nelson**_

* * *

That night, Bruce was quietly reading a book when Tony slipped in.

"What's up?" Bruce asked, not looking up from his book. The question was silly, he knew why Tony was here. One little jump and his friend thought he was going to Mumbai. Tony didn't answer for a few moments, instead going over to look at the bookcases.

"You okay?" He finally questioned. Bruce sighed and closed his book, marking the page.

"I'm not leaving Tony." He said, going directly to the root of the problem. Tony nodded.

"Yeah, I know that. But I realized today that I don't really know much about you. Like, your past. I'm always the one babbling about myself, but you never put anything out there." He said, looking oddly concerned. Bruce shook his head.

"Tony, I don't talk about my past." Bruce said firmly. Tony pointed at him.

"Aha! That means that something horrible has happened in your past!" He said triumphantly. Bruce just raised an eyebrow and Tony slowly lowered his arm.

"Right? I mean, other than the whole giant green rage monster thing." Bruce shook his head.

"No Tony." He said, going back to his book, "just no." He could feel the other man's eyes on him for several minutes before Tony finally turned and walked out. As soon as the door clicked closed, Bruce put his book down and stood, walking over to the window and leaning against the cool glass. Tony had managed to dig up some memories that were better left buried, and Bruce struggled to push down the screams and fear that were playing havoc in his head. He let out a deep breath. He didn't want anyone's pity.

* * *

As soon as Peter slid into the limo the next day he had a guess as to who Bruce was.

"Head researcher?" He asked. Bruce didn't even look up from his book.

"Nope. That's what Tony does. Or foists off on some poor employee."

"Bodyguard?" Peter was getting desperate now. Bruce actually laughed.

"Sure Peter, I'm the muscle." He replied, a wry grin twisting his lips. Peter threw up his hands.

"Why won't you tell me?" He demanded, obviously frustrated. Bruce sighed and marked his place in his book. If he kept getting interrupted, he was never going to finish it.

"To be honest, this is the most fun I've had in years. Not much chance to interact like this with people in India." He answered, mostly truthfully. To dig really deep, he enjoyed the young man's respect and didn't want to lose it. Peter crossed his arms.

"You have a horrible form of entertainment. Where's Tony?" He questioned, just now noticing the billionaire's absence.

"Oh, he told me to go get you, said something about upgrades to the suit." Bruce answered, opening his book again. He might be able to finish it if the two would distract each other. Peter brightened.

"Think he'll let me see it?"

"Sure, just don't ask to see the blueprints. There are very few people in the world who can see those."

"Are you one of them?" Bruce nodded absentmindedly.

"Yes, but I don't understand some of the engineering behind it. I'm more of a physics man than mechanics." Peter was silent for a few moments.

"Why were you in India?" He asked.

"Personal reasons. Do you always ask this many questions?" Bruce replied, feeling a faint irritation. Maybe it would be a good idea to tell the kid who he was, he might shut up then.

"Just trying to get to know you." Peter grinned. Bruce rolled his eyes, grateful when the limo pulled to a stop. Peter quickly deserted him to go bug Tony, leaving Bruce to finish his book in peace.

* * *

Bruce wasn't really sure what to expect when he entered the lab later that day. Considering that Tony and Peter had been in there alone all afternoon, he was torn between the aftermaths of an explosion and Peter locked in the 'this might be explosive room' for annoying Tony. He certainly didn't expect the two of them to be bent over a worktable together. Nor did he expect a faceful of webbing as soon as he got inside the door. Even as he staggered back towards the door, Bruce was inwardly trying to quell his anger towards the two 'mad scientists'. _Stupid teenager. And Tony. But he's basically a teenager anyways. With a goatee. And gray hair. Stupid Tony._ He thought, even as he heard them approach him. Of course, he couldn't see anything through the webbing.

"Hey, Big Guy, you okay there?" Bruce settled for crossing his arms, since he couldn't even glare.

"Wow, that was hilarious." Peter's voice came. Bruce let out a muffled growl and Tony chuckled nervously.

"Yeah kid, hilarious. Now let's get the webbing off Brucey's face." Apparently even Tony had a sense of self-preservation, who knew?

* * *

Bruce felt sorry for women, they had to wax their eyebrows. He was fairly certain that industrial strength webbing couldn't be that different. An hour later, and he was still glaring at the two.

"Hey, the kid pushed the button." Tony said for the hundredth time.

"You're supposed to be the responsible adult around here." Peter shot back.

"I'm never responsible, don't you read the newspaper?" Tony crossed his arms, looking for all the world like a petulant child. Bruce groaned and rubbed his temples. He really didn't need this right now. The argument was interrupted by the lab door swooshing open and Natasha walking in, blood dripping from her right arm.

"Hey Bruce, think you can patch me up?" She questioned, motioning to her shoulder. Bruce jumped up, searching in various drawers for supplies.

"Yeah, just sit down." He said, voice muffled from his head being under his desk. Natasha perched on one of the high stools, ignoring Tony and Peter's incredulous looks. Bruce hurried over with the supplies.

"What happened?" He asked, tearing off her sleeve at the shoulder. She waved her other arm.

"Sparring with Clint, he got a little wild with his swing." She replied, not even wincing as he cleaned out the sizable cut with alcohol.

"They spar with knives?" Bruce ignored Peter's hushed comment, concentrating on the cut.

"All right, you don't need stitches, I'm just going to butterfly bandage it shut." He announced, quickly doing so.

"I'd tell you not to do a lot with it, but you'll just ignore me, so be careful." He warned her with a small smile. She nodded, then made her way out, no doubt to go kill Clint. There was silence in the lab as Bruce cleaned up.

"So, team medic?" Peter finally spoke up. Bruce smiled.

"Sometimes." He replied. Actually, most of them came to him with their injuries, preferring not to go to the medical bay unless they were dying. And even then, they fought it.

"So, not all the time?" Peter pressed. Bruce shook his head, his smile fading.

"No, not all the time." _Some of the time I'm a monster._


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Remember to vote! Please? Anyways, there should be one more chapter after this, maybe two. I tried to do it all in this one, but you can see how that turned out. :P So enjoy! Or don't, that's fine to. :P**

* * *

_**I've been running in circles round my head  
Too scared to tell you who I am  
Like a heartless skeleton**_

_**-Skeleton, Hawk Nelson**_

* * *

It was Peter's fourth day as an Avenger when they were called out. The three 'science people' were in the lab when lights started flashing.

"Avengers Assemble. Avengers Assemble." The somewhat pleasant feminine voice echoed through the room. Bruce sighed and wiped his hands on a rag.

"Let's go, Tony." He said. Tony didn't budge, drawing a worried look from Peter.

"Just a sec, I'm almost done!" Bruce rolled his eyes, then nodded at Peter.

"Go get suited up. I'll deal with him." He said. Peter nodded and ran for the elevator, a nervous look on his face.

"Tony. Now." Bruce tried his version of Pepper's demanding voice, but Tony just shook his head.

"The world can wait a few seconds, I'm almost done." He said.

"Jarvis, get the suit ready." Bruce ordered, rubbing his nose. Tony was going to be the death of him, he just knew it.

"Already done sir." Was the AI's reply.

"Just go on ahead, I'll catch up." Tony ordered. Bruce nodded and went towards the elevator.

"If you're not there when we get there, I'm calling you." He warned. The elevator doors closed just after Tony's muttered 'yes mother'.

As soon as Bruce stepped out he was greeted by the rest of the team. Peter on the other hand, was staring at the Loki-shaped crater mounted on the wall.

"What's that?" He asked, pointing at it. Bruce smirked.

"Memorabilia." He replied. Tony had mounted it right after rebuilding, claiming that it was the best piece of art in the tower.

"So kid, you haven't met Fury yet, have you?" Clint asked. Peter shook his head.

"No. He's the director of SHIELD, right?" He asked.

"Yes. He's the best of the best." Natasha replied, glaring at Clint. The rest of the flight was silent.

* * *

"So, basically we're dealing with robots wreaking havoc in LA?" Tony summarized Fury's speech.

"Yes. We need you to stop them. How's the Hulk?" He directed the last question at Bruce, who shrugged, not linking being the center of attention.

"He follows some orders. Only from those on the team though, and he still views Thor as a punching bag. He hasn't met Peter yet." He replied, looking down at his toes. He really hated it that his alter ego seemed to enjoy beating up his teammate, no matter how many times Natasha reassured him that Thor could take it. Fury just nodded.

"Tell him what to do on the way. Now go." They quickly followed his command, heading back to the Quinjet.

"Hulk tamer?" Peter asked after catching up with Bruce. The doctor smiled.

"Yeah, something like that." He replied, settling into a seat. "Now, the main thing with dealing with the, uh, Hulk, is to not run away or act afraid or threatening. If it seems like you're attacking him, you'll get smashed. So just be friendly and you'll be fine." Bruce finished quickly. He hated talking about his alter ego. The rest of the flight was relatively short, and soon everyone but Tony and Bruce were preparing to jump out, having no suitable place to land the jet, and no one wanted a repeat of New York.

"Bruce, here." Bruce looked up to see Peter holding out a parachute. He shook his head.

"No thanks, I don't need one." He said with a small smile.

"What, aren't you-" Peter was cut off by Natasha opening the door.

"Let's go!" She yelled. Bruce was the first one out, not wanting to squash any of his teammates. For a few seconds there was the freeing sensation of falling, then the Other Guy took over.

* * *

Peter was more surprised than he'd ever been before (besides the whole spidey powers thing) when Bruce jumped out of the jet and his skin rippled, turning green. He had never considered that the mild mannered man was hiding such an enormous personality. Although a lot of things made sense now; Tony always poking Bruce with pointy or shocking things, the moniker 'big guy' and even some of Bruce's comments and smiles. Peter watched the Hulk land below him and a crazy, highly stupid idea occurred to him. He decided to do it, just because it seemed like fun.

"Hey kid, the parachute's there for a reason." Clint's voice came through the comm.

"Eh, I'm good." Peter replied, spreading his arms in an attempt to slow a little.

"Son, it's a bad idea, whatever you're thinking of." Steve said evenly.

"Yeah, most likely. But hey, I'm a dumb teenager." Peter grinned under the mask, the shot some webbing at a building he was flying by, slowing himself down just enough to land on a giant green shoulder.

"Really bad idea Peter." He could hear the nervousness in Natasha's voice even while being roared at. He ignored her and just squatted there, still grinning.

"Hey there. I hear you're quite the guy." He said, ignoring both his teammates and the robots for a moment. The Hulk considered him for a moment before grunting and turning away. Apparently he wasn't worth consideration.

"I'm impressed kid, no one else has gotten a ride before." Iron Man shot by, then steadied himself just in front of him.

"I guess I'm just cooler than you guys." Peter replied, relaxing a little.

"You wish. Hey Big Guy, ready to smash some stuff?" Peter could imagine Tony's smirk when the Hulk took a flying leap at the robots, startling him enough to almost fall off. However, he managed to swing off a nearby building, making it look smooth enough to be on purpose, before running along the building, studying the bots for any weaknesses.

"Hey kid, when are you moving to the Tower?" Tony asked, currently blasting some to bits. Peter shot some webbing into the 'eyes' of a couple, then smashed their heads together before answering.

"See, the only problem is my aunt doesn't know about the whole Spidey thing." He replied, wondering why the bots were so small. Seriously, no one could take over the world with them.

"Really? I figured the bruises and stuff were a dead giveaway." Tony replied. Peter leapt over two bots before turning and sticking up their joints. They were smashed in the next second.

"It's kind of one of those things where she knows, but we both pretend she doesn't." He answered.

"Would you two talk about this later?" Natasha interrupted. Peter glanced at her just in time to see her fry two bots with his bracelets.

"Uh sure," He said, quickly moving closer to Steve. He seemed safer than the scary Russian.

Peter was feeling pretty good about the whole fighting as a team thing, until he noticed something.

"Uh, guys… I think the mini robots are becoming a big robot." He said, watching as the robots they had almost defeated began to meld together with each other.

"Yep, that could be an issue." Tony commented as his repulsors glanced off the now giant robot.

"Hulk, smash it!" Steve called. In the next instant a green blut shot by them, attaching itself to side of the five story tall robots. However, even the Hulk's furious pounding yielded only a few dents.

"Ok, these things got a lot tougher." Clint said.

"Yeah, but you gotta admit, this is a lot better plan than the little ones." Peter commented.

"No admiring of the evil plans, kid." Tony replied.

"Alright, next time we're in the lab I won't listen to you when you go into evil genius mode." Peter retorted, grinning.

"Evil genius- Never mind, we need to focus here! Tony, do you know where the relay center is?" Steve asked.

"Of course I do, it's in the chest. And yes, it does run on electricity, Captain Obvious." Peter was fairly certain there was a funny backstory in there somewhere, and he made a mental not to ask about it.

"Peter, do your webs conduct electricity?" Steve asked next. Peter nodded.

"Yeah, we just developed new ones yesterday that-"

"Great, wrap up his chest, then bring three strings attached to it back here. Natasha, turn those bracelets up to full power. Tony, doesn't your suit have a taiser?" Peter didn't hear the billionaire's reply, he was already swinging towards the robot. The Captain's plan seemed sound to him, if there wasn't a safeguard against electrical currents.

"Hey Big Green." He greeted, landing lightly on the Hulk's shoulder for a moment before jumping to the robot, sticking easily to the smooth metal surface. It took only a few moments for him to wrap its chest, much as he'd done to Dr. Connors only a few weeks previous.

"Alright, let's charge up Metalhead." He said, handing the ends of the webbing to Steve. The Captain quickly gave one each to Tony and Natasha, and the third to Thor.

"Thor, you make sure it doesn't fall on buildings where there could be civilians. He ordered. The Asgardian nodded and backed up until the web was taut, bracing himself.

"Okay, Tony, Natasha, go for it." Steve said. There was a silence as everyone watched the sparks of electricity jump up the webs until it reached the bot. For a moment it seemed as though there was no effect, then it slowly began to fall, guided by Thor. Peter squinted at the road in front of them. He could have sworn he saw movement. Then he saw something that made his blood run cold.

"Guys, there's a kid!" He yelled, lunging forward. Before he could even get into the radius of the bot there was an ear-splitting roar, closely followed by a green blur shooting across, sweeping up the child in the process. In the next instant, the robot fell.

"I'm going to say that Banner made a breakthrough." Tony's voice broke the ensuing silence.

"Tony, Peter, go check on the child and the doctor, make sure that they're okay. We'll stay here and make sure this thing is dead." Steve ordered. Peter nodded and swung in the direction the Hulk had gone, Tony flying just above. This team thing was hard work.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Last part! :D This is longest one so far… Seven chapters and at least a thousand words in each one; I'm proud of myself! :D **

**Quick warning: mentions of abuse in this one, so if that upsets you, then you might not want to read this. More on that in the note at the bottom… **

* * *

_**We feel alive inside for the first time,  
We've got to run not hide, from the former lives  
We gotta take it, make it, never gonna fake it  
This time we're breaking free, and making history.**_

_**-Alive; Hawk Nelson**_

* * *

Bruce had woken up in some pretty strange conditions, but waking up curled around a little boy was definitely a new one. He stared down into big blue eyes before carefully straightening, holding his pants up as he did so.

"Uh, are you ok?" He asked, his voice raspy. It was always raspy after a transformation. The little boy just nodded and kept staring.

"What's your name?" Bruce was really wishing for his teammates at this point, at least they would tell him what was going on.

"Neal." The boy said. Bruce waited until it was clear that nothing more was forthcoming before speaking himself.

"Hello Neal, I'm Bruce." He said.

"You saved me." The boy stated calmly, ignoring his last statement. Bruce wrinkled his brow in confusion and frustration. The Other Guy never saved anyone.

"I-I did?" He stuttered. The boy nodded solemnly.

"Found them!" Bruce recognized Tony's voice and glanced up to see the red and gold suit hovering above them, one gloved hand holding some clothes.

"I was almost there!" Peter yelled, dropping beside them. Bruce shook his head with a small smile. No doubt the two of them had been like that the whole battle.

"Here you go, Brucey, figured you'd want these." Tony tossed down the clothes and Bruce caught them easily.

"Hey buddy, how you doing?" Peter easily distracted the boy, letting him play with his mask, while Bruce changed.

"Alright, we just have to take Neal here home, and we'll be good to go." Peter said, slipping on his mask again. Bruce nodded.

"Uh, yeah, sure." He said, still confused about the kid. Did he really save him?

It wasn't until they were dropping off the kid at his house that Bruce began to believe it.

"You're my new favorite hero." Neal grinned up at him, eyes sparkling. Bruce couldn't speak for a moment.

"Uh, um, thanks?" He finally stammered out, unsure of what do in this situation. Apparently that was enough, since the kid then turned to Tony and Peter.

"You guys are pretty cool too." He said, then ran to the front door, giving a wave before going in.

"That's new." Bruce said, still staring at the door. Peter shook his head.

"Nah doc, you're my favorite hero too!" He said, mask still on. Bruce's worry about Peter being frightened now rose to the surface.

"So, ah, the, Other Guy, didn't hurt you?" He questioned, looking down at his feet. Peter's laugh startled him into looking up.

"Are you kidding? Big Green loves me!" He said. Bruce studied him carefully, but couldn't tell if he was lying with the mask.

"C'mon, we better get going or Natasha will leave us here." Tony said, firing up his thrusters. Bruce had resigned himself to walking when Tony grabbed him around the waist, taking off. Peter was close behind them, swinging from building to building. Bruce decided to leave off on scolding Tony for his recklessness until later, simply enjoying the flight for now.

* * *

Back at the Tower, Bruce noticed Peter's eye as soon as he took his mask off.

"You better get some ice on that, or you'll get a black eye." He commented. Peter nodded.

"Yeah, I'm not really sure how I got it to be honest." He said, heading towards the kitchen, "You get any black eyes in your day?" He called back. Bruce noticed everyone in the room trying to watch him without showing it and kept his face neutral.

"Yeah, I had my share." He replied. _And then some._ He thought bitterly. Peter walked back in, holding an ice pack to his head.

"Were you bullied?" He asked, expression curious. Bruce nodded.

"Yeah, something like that." He replied, picking up the newspaper. Thankfully, no one pressed the issue, instead putting on a Doctor Who rerun until Peter went home and they all went to bed. Then Bruce was almost expecting it when Tony slipped into his room. He sighed anyways though, and set down the notebook he'd been absently doodling an algorithm in.

"Tony." He greeted, voice even. The other man looked uncharacteristically serious.

"Bruce, I need you to tell me what's going on, what happened. I put off Pepper for this." Tony said. Bruce shook his head.

"Tony, it's the past. I try not to talk about the past, it frustrates me too much." He said, pulling off his glasses. Tony just planted himself on the bed.

"I'm not leaving!" He sang out. Bruce shrugged and systematically grabbed his pillow and a blanket.

"What are you doing?" Tony asked, head cocked at an angle.

"I'm going to sleep on the couch, since it appears that you want to stay here." Bruce said, heading for the door.

"Jarvis, lock the door!" Tony called. Bruce growled when he heard it click.

"Toonny…" He drew out the other man's name.

"We aren't leaving until you tell me what's up." Tony said, his arms crossed. Bruce dropped the pillow and blanket and walked over to the window. He looked at the night sky, struggling to hold back the memories. He flinched when Tony came up behind him and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I just want you to work through it, whatever it is." Tony said seriously. Bruce took a deep breath, making sure he was in full control before whirling around.

"You want to know what's wrong? Why I can't handle it when I see children beaten or dead? Why I have issues with men so much as tapping my shoulder? My father used me as a punching bag for most of my school years. Then he killed my mother in a fit of rage, and threatened to do the same to me if I told anyone. Of course, his threats didn't mean anything when his drunken ramblings gave him away. He's still in a psychiatric ward." Bruce paused for breath, but the pity in Tony's eyes just made him angrier, and he kept dumping.

"After that, I was bounced around from foster homes and group homes, always too smart for my own good, at least that's what they told me. I managed to get into college when I turned 18, and got my first good break; a scholarship and a job as soon as I graduated." Bruce couldn't handle looking at Tony any longer, he turned back to the window.

"Is that what you were expecting?" He asked, his voice low now.

"Honestly? Something like that. You don't really hide it all that well." Tony said, moving to stand next to him.

"Then why'd you ask?" Bruce questioned, his anger still simmering.

"I guess I wanted to hear it from you." Tony replied. Bruce took a few deep breaths.

"Well, you heard it." He said, slowly repressing the screams echoing in his head.

"That I did. Are you alright?" Tony asked. Bruce shook his head.

"I don't think I ever will be, but you can't fix me. I'm a man, not a machine." _Actually, I'm a monster._

"Bruce, you're not a monster." Tony's low voice drew him out of his thoughts, startling him with the similarities.

"What?" He said, confused.

"You're not a monster. I know what you're thinking, it's not hard to figure out. You are a man, a scientist, and a hero to a little kid. No matter what happens, you'll always be a hero." Tony said firmly, still looking out the window. Bruce shook his head.

"Sorry Tony, it's going to take a little while to believe that." He said. Tony clapped his shoulder, and this time he didn't flinch.

"That's what I'm here for. Now, if you'll excuse me, I do believe that I've left Ms. Potts alone long enough for her to finish paperwork." He said, heading towards the door.

"Tony." Bruce's voice was enough to make him stop, "Thanks."

"Anytime Big Guy."

* * *

The next day, Tony, Bruce, and Peter were sitting at Peter's dining room table with his Aunt May.

"So, you want Peter to take pictures?" May asked.

"Yes. More specifically, we want him to take pictures of the Avengers. The higher ups want more press, so we need someone to take pictures of battles and other things. He would have to stay in the Tower, so that he could always come with us. Of course, you could come with him, and we would pay the rent or mortgage on this house for you." Tony could be very smooth when he wanted to be, and Bruce had to wonder how he was just now realizing it.

"What about school?" May asked.

"Well, we certainly wouldn't deprive him of an education; this wouldn't interfere at all. I'll even send a car to take him to school and pick him up every day. Plus we have me and Bruce here to help him with any homework or anything like that." Bruce frowned, and then quickly smiled when May looked his way. He didn't want to help with high school homework; he could do it in his sleep. Of course, Peter probably wouldn't need help anyways.

"Aunt May, I would really like to do this. It's a great opportunity." Peter spoke up, and Bruce almost laughed at the little boy eagerness on his face. May's gaze softened as she looked at him, but there was also worry.

"Would he be safe?" She asked, and Bruce could tell that she knew. Somehow, she knew about everything.

"I can guarantee you that Bruce and I will always protect him." Tony said sincerely. Bruce wasn't so sure, but he wasn't about to speak up.

"And how are you involved, Dr. Banner?" Now Bruce wasn't sure what she meant, so he took the safe route.

"I'm just a scientist, ma'am. I help Tony with his projects and a few other things." He had no doubt that she had done research about him, about the Other Guy, and knew exactly what he was. However, her gaze betrayed no fear, something that he was adept at picking up on. She held his gaze for a moment longer, then smiled.

"You know what, this sounds like a wonderful opportunity. It would be foolish to turn it down. Mr. Stark, Peter and I would be honored to accept your offer." She said, gripping Peter's hand. Bruce was fairly certain he saw a wince on the kid's face, but he wasn't sure.

"I promise, you won't regret it." Tony said, standing and shaking her hand. Bruce did the same.

"I hope not." He heard her whisper just before they closed the door.

"That went well." Tony said once they were settled in the car, a fast convertible. Bruce nodded.

"Yeah, it went great." He said dryly. Tony just grinned and gunned the engine before taking off. As they flew down the street, Bruce couldn't help but be reminded of the old movies where the cowboy rides off into the sunset. Except there was no sunset. Or love story. Or horse. Or even a cowboy. So really nothing like it, but still. It just somehow felt like an ending of sorts.

The End

(For now)

**So? Did you like it? Tell me! I worked hard to get the information on Bruce, but please tell me if I'm wrong. I looked it up on the Marvel website though, so you might want to take complaints to them. :P Oh, and virtual cookies to whoever can tell me where I pulled Neal from! :D**


	8. Sneak Peek

**So, option A has been chosen. :) And as promised, here is a special sneak-peek. :)**

* * *

Bruce had an emergency pager from when he was on the run. It was for those people that he was concerned about, or that he trusted. If someone had a bad medical condition, he would sometimes give them the pager number. It was mostly when there were children though. He was a sucker for children.

However, he had honestly forgotten he even had it. Until the dumb thing went off in the middle of the night. Then he was searching for the beeping pager in the pitch black of his room.

"Stupid pager. Who's trying to get ahold of me anyways?" He muttered, finally unearthing the source of the beeps. He squinted at it a few moments before pushing his glasses on his nose. There was a simple phone number on it. Bruce sighed and grabbed his phone. Whatever this person needed, they probably needed to talk to him now.

* * *

**The sequel will be called "Never Too Late", so be on the lookout! I'll probably post it tomorrow or the next day. :)**


End file.
